Year-old indecency charge against sheriff is finally dropped

A year-old petty indecency town ordinance violation against Perry County Sheriff Keith Kellerman has been dropped following a meeting between attorneys and a judge in chambers in the Belleville courthouse.

The case was fraught with "gotcha politics" from the beginning, but time heals all wounds and the citation, which would have carried a $100 fine while jeopardizing an otherwise high quality law enforcement officer's career, went away as expected.

The 49-year-old sheriff and another man were arrested in December 2011 after a Caseyville officer alleged he saw them engaging in a sex act in a station wagon. The other defendant, 32-year-old J. Ian Stennett of Collinsville, pleaded guilty to the indecency charge and was fined $100. The citation against him has been expunged (dismissed) after he fulfilled his obligations of paying his fine and completing court supervision.

A lawyer who represents the Illinois Press Association contends Tuesday's hearing violated state open-meetings laws because the public and the media have a right to report on judicial proceedings. Yet the meeting was in a judge's chambers. The public and the media are typically not invited into those proceedings.

The case included allegations that a soured former Perry County employee may have been remotely associated with what some called "entrapment." There were also arguments that the incident was out of plain view except for the policeman's intrusion and that there were privacy issues. At the end of the day the case had gone through a handful of continuances and wore itself out as most thought it would. Through it all Kellerman maintained widespread support.